Save the Last Turtle Sanctuaries in Lebanon-Declare them Protected & May 5th Sea Turtles National Day

Why this is important

South Lebanon…
where the last untouched beaches of the Lebanese coast
lays... the ones where sea turtles are born and come back every year to lay
eggs. One of them is where the “Orange House” has been created by Mona Khalil,
guardian angel of the turtles. The “Orange House” has been transformed to an
ecological site that spans on 1.4 km of coast. Protecting this zone along with few
other southern coastal spots; Tyre, Adloun, Sarafand, Al Naqura and Zahrani, where the sea
turtles habitats struggling to survive uncontrolled urbanisation and habitat
destruction and pollution, is even more important given the vital ecological role
of the sea turtles in preserving and restoring the ecosystem, in addition for
being considered an endangered species globally.

It has been several years that those natural
zones suffer from multiple
aggressions: sand theft, municipal waste discharge, installing walls,
construction works… all of which are slowly destroying one of the last
sanctuaries of the coastline. The most recent attack was the work of developers
who took away an iron fence to build a concrete wall to mount kiosks and
restaurants to create a private resort in Al-Mansouri. It is believed that a certain manipulation of real property classification occured for the area known for being classified as agricultural and changed into residential. These acts are more frequent, establishing a long and sad list of
serious violations and illegal activities. The same threats apply to Adloun, Al Naqura, Sarafand and Zahrani beaches where these almost hidden by illegal construction
that caused catastrophic consequences on the marine habitats.

It is worth noting that those sea turtles come
to lay their eggs on the beach where they were born. The disappearance or
alteration of those sites modifies the turtles’ behaviour and drastically
reduces their birth rate, further exacerbating their endangered status. In the
recent years, sea turtle nests and birth rates have recorded a sharp decline. Sea turtles, among many other species in Lebanon’s wildlife,
are clearly under threat of extinction due to human activities and lack of
conservation efforts.

Last September (2014) Green Southerners, an
active environmental NGO in the South, among their
activities to protect the environment in South Lebanon, presented to the Ministry of Environment a proposal to declare May 5th "Sea Turtles National Day in Lebanon” and for it to be a day of activities to promote and raise awareness about these
beautiful and vital creatures of the country.

It is everyone’s duty to participate in the
improvement of not only our country, but also in the protection of our natural
resources which do not belong to one country but to the entire planet. The
region’s last turtle and marine species sanctuaries are in danger! Help us
protect these sites, to raise the awareness about sea turtles, and push the
government and municipalities to declare the turtle beaches fully protected
nature reserve and part of the local natural heritage and for the Government to
Declare May 5th as Sea Turtles National Day in Lebanon.